1. How did you first become acquainted with the Church of
Scientology?

DMSMH

2. What initially appealed to you about scientology?

Practical, hands-on approach, non-Christian

3. Were there problems in your life that you thought
scientology would address?

Yes, insecurity, anxiety, low self-esteem

4. Did you see, experience, or hear about things that didn't
seem right while you were in the Church of Scientology? What were
they, and what convinced you to set aside your feelings?

Hearing of people going psycho and being 'babysat', poor food, inhuman hours, shoddy living conditions, injustices.

5. Why did you choose to stay in the Church of
Scientology?

I stayed in because the goal of OT seemed cool, it seemed there were some really decent people who had very high goals, to help LRH clear the planet, etc.

6. Were you staff or public? If staff, was it at a mission or
an org? Were you ever in the Sea Org or OSA? Which unit? If not on
staff, did you ever volunteer to 'help out'?

SO at Gold.

7. Why did you leave the Church of Scientology? Was there a
"final straw"?

I became disillusioned. Auditing never was smooth for me. Some of it seemed degrading. OT levels were bizarre. I started to feel like some of what LRH said was extreme. Disagreements with various policies or tech. Final straw was watching an OT VIII, Class 8 Scn disintegrate and become insane.

8. Do you think the Church of Scientology needs to change some
of its practices? If so, what should be changed? How did those
practices affect your life?

I think LRH became obsessed and paranoid and ultra-serious at a certain point. 'This is a deadly serious activity' 'we'd rather have you dead than incapable' etc. People seemed very judgmental of each other. The people who seemed to go up the Bridge were only the very rich or the very arrogant (sometimes both). Everyone else struggled with the high prices and barely make progress.

9. If the items you listed in the previous question were
changed, would you consider rejoining or staying in the Church of
Scientology? If so, why?

I think some of the tech is workable, some of it is the insane rantings of a madman. If what is workable could be sorted out and applied at decent prices, maybe people could actually be helped.

10. Any additional comments you would like to make?

I have to worry about security. I wish people could be more open about their experiences. Someday I will be. Thanks.